Recently, a group of Latino students met to discuss the possibility of forming an independent Latino club. If formed, the new club would probably be an extension of the African Latin American Society (Af-Lat-Am), rather than a separate entity, according to Af-Lat-Am President Edwin Diaz ’07. Despite the clear Latino presence on the Af-Lat-Am Board, including the President, Diaz, some students still feel the need for a club dedicated solely to Latino culture. Af-Lat-Am exists to celebrate the various black and Latino cultures at Phillips Academy. Originally created in 1968, Af-Lat-Am created one club for the two cultural groups because Black and Latino students often have similar backgrounds. Of the 1096 students at Phillips Academy, roughly 100 (9.2%) are black and 54 (5%) are Hispanic/Latino. The term black refers to African-Americans, while Hispanic/Latino students can be of any race. Diaz said, “The matter is that with so many cultures represented in Af-Lat-Am, it is difficult to specifically address the differences within each cultural background. I was present at the [Latino student] meetings…and it became evident that there is a need for a group that exclusively relates to the issues of Latino students on campus.” Dhariana Gonzalez ’08 gathered a group of Latino students for the two meetings mentioned by Diaz. The first meeting was held on October 12 in the Blue Room of Commons with approximately 10 students. During the dinner, the students voiced general discontent over the lack of Latino presence in Af-Lat-Am. Some Latino students at the meeting also said that they wanted to educate students about different Latino cultures. Others stressed the importance of representing international Latinos, who may not feel a strong connection with Af-Lat-Am. The term Latino refers to a diverse ethnic group that includes around 25 Central and South American races. Thus, Gonzalez noted that the students “discussed what being Latino meant for each of us, seeing that there’s so much diversity [within the Latin culture].” Fernando Alonso, Director of the (MS)2 program, hosted the second dinner on October 29 at his apartment in Bertha Bailey House. 12 students and 3 faculty members attended, along with a few parents who were on campus for Parents’ Weekend. At this second meeting, the students continued to acquaint themselves with each other with questions like, “What was your adjustment like coming to PA? What did you find hard or easy?” Johnny Carmona ’09 commented on the meeting, “Overall, we did not come up with specific ways to achieve any goals for a Latino organization. However, we will be meeting again some time in December, and hopefully then we can establish something concrete, and not just general feelings.” This is not the first time that students have expressed their desire for a singularly Latino group. According to Mr. Alonso, students have tried to form a Latino club in the past. “They’ll start up, as do many organizations on campus, based on the specific needs of certain students. Once those students leave, the club dies off. Interest ebbs and flows,” he said. One past effort to form an organization resulted in a Latino club called “La Alianza Latina, ” Spanish for “The Latino Alliance.” Nick Olmo ’98, along with three other students, founded the group in 1996 based on feelings that Latinos were not receiving enough attention on campus. Olmo said, “A lot of us [Latinos on campus] at the time did not know nearly enough about our own cultures to be ambassadors on campus. We felt that we needed La Alianza Latina to exist for our own education so that we could then share our knowledge and experiences with the entire community.” La Alianza Latina’s success largely depended on Olmo’s leadership. Once Olmo graduated, the desire for a Latino organization still existed, but students lacked the appropriate leadership, and the club disintegrated. Olmo attended the students’ first meeting on October 12 and offered his advice: “In my opinion, right now is the perfect time for us to make a formal statement as a community that we not only wish to support the current Latino population on campus, but also further develop that group’s presence as their numbers increase throughout our country and worldwide.” The current group of Latino students on campus has decided not to rush the formation of a formal organization, in order to avoid the possible failure of a hastily organized club. Instead, they plan to continue informal meetings and discussion. The group has also recognized the importance of establishing connections with the faculty and maintaining strong student support. Gonzalez ’08 said, “[Our goals for this group] really depend on if we can keep up momentum. Student demand and support shifts a lot, so we’ll just have to wait and see what happens. The specifics of what we’re going to do are still undecided.”
